Harvick's advice to young racers: "It's just about the results"
There are many things that can grab headlines, but Kevin Harvick says he’s learned in his career performance on the track does the best talking.










“I think that’s the one thing that I try to explain to all the younger racers. An extra 100,000 people on Twitter isn’t going to make you stick around (the sport) longer,” Harvick said.
“Performance on the race track is really the bread and butter of what we do and no matter if you have a funny personality or you have a famous last name it doesn’t matter.
“In the end, Danica Patrick is probably the best example that I can think of that, is just the fact of having the results on the race track.”
Patrick, who moved to fulltime NASCAR racing in 2013 from IndyCar, brought a ton of headlines and her passionate fan base to the sport.
However, her performance on the track never lived up to the hype. When she left NASCAR following the 2018 Daytona 500, she had seven top-10 finishes in 191 starts and never finished better than 24th in the series standings.
While many of NASCAR’s up-and-coming drivers have been touted as potential stars, once again this year a trio of veterans – Harvick, Denny Hamlin and Brad Keselowski – are the top favorites to win the Cup Series championship.
Keselowski, 36, is the youngest of the group, which together has won 20 of the season’s 32 races thus far. Harvick leads the way with a career-best nine wins.
Harvick, 44, said confidence with his No. 4 Stewart-Haas Racing team and its confidence in him continues to propel their successful relationship.
Having a team that believes in you
Focusing on performance also helps to keep everyone dedicated to the same goal.
“I think every week we’ve put a lot of pressure on ourselves to figure out why we didn’t run like we did or why we ran like we did in order to try to continue that trend forward,” Harvick said. “I like what I do.
“I like my team more than anything and that’s really the driving factor in what makes all of this go around is having a team that believes in you, and I have an organization that believes in me and we’ve been fortunate to have a lot of success on the race track.
“Look, in the end it’s the same in every sport. You have to be successful at what you’re doing.”
Harvick said there have been times in his career when an absence of performance on the Cup side would force him to find other avenues to remain “relevant.”
“Sometimes you caused headlines in order to keep yourself in the mix and move yourself forward, but fortunately now it’s really just about the results and having all that side chatter kind of put to bed takes a lot of things away from the equation,” he said.
“Just make it simpler. We can concentrate on trying to be good on the race track and in the end that comes with a team and people around you that can get the job done and believe in what you’re doing.”
Related video

Previous article
Clint Bowyer: "It’s time to allow somebody else to have fun”
Next article
Denny Hamlin looks to Kansas to 'lock in' Cup title chances

About this article
Series | NASCAR Cup |
Drivers | Kevin Harvick |
Teams | Stewart-Haas Racing |
Author | Jim Utter |
Harvick's advice to young racers: "It's just about the results"
From the archive: Dale Earnhardt’s final Autosport interview
The death of Dale Earnhardt in the 2001 Daytona 500 shocked NASCAR to the core. At the Daytona 24 Hours, two weeks before his fatal accident, ‘The Intimidator’ shared his expectations of challenging for an eighth Cup title with JONATHAN INGRAM, in an article first published in the 15 February 2001 issue of Autosport magazine. Little did we know then what tragedy would unfold…
The lasting NASCAR legacy after Dale Earnhardt’s death
On February 18, 2001, seven-time NASCAR Cup champion Dale Earnhardt – the fearless ‘Intimidator’ – was in his element at Daytona International Speedway. While his own DEI team’s cars ran 1-2 towards the finish line, his famed #3 Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet Monte Carlo was playing rear gunner to block any late runs from the chasing pack. As the cars tore through Turns 3 and 4 on that fateful final lap, Earnhardt maintained the strongarm tactics that encapsulated his persona… but his actions in those moments sadly proved to be his last.
Inspired by Pitbull, the “revolution” sweeping through NASCAR
The NASCAR Cup Series is changing. Whether it be the gradual morphing out the seasoned drivers of yesterday as the next generation step up, a radical calendar shake-up featuring more road courses than ever before and the prospect of an all-new car on the horizon, stock car racing’s highest level is nearing the end of a huge facelift.
The NASCAR storylines to watch out for in 2021
This weekend's Daytona 500 kickstarts a NASCAR Cup season that promises plenty of intrigue courtesy of new owners and a refreshed calendar. Here's what you need to know ahead of the new season…
Why Kyle Larson can't blow his big shot at redemption
From a disgraced NASCAR exile, Kyle Larson has been given a chance of redemption by the powerhouse Hendrick Motorsports squad. Effectively replacing seven-time champion Jimmie Johnson is no easy billing, but Larson has every intention of repaying the team's faith...
Why Roger Penske is an American motorsport icon
In this exclusive one-on-one interview, Roger Penske reveals the inner drive that has made him not only a hugely successful team owner and businessman but also the owner of Indianapolis Motor Speedway and IndyCar. He spoke to David Malsher-Lopez.
Why NASCAR's latest second-generation champion is just getting started
Chase Elliott's late charge to the 2020 NASCAR Cup title defied predictions that it would be a Kevin Harvick versus Denny Hamlin showdown. While the two veterans are showing no signs of slowing down, Elliott's triumph was a window into NASCAR's future…
Why Kyle Larson deserves his second chance in a cancel culture
“You can’t hear me? Hey n*****” Those fateful words uttered by Kyle Larson, spoken into his esports headset on April 12, were directed at his sim racing spotter – but instead they quickly became amplified around the world via social media, including his own Twitch stream.